Chikuzenni is usually cooked at home in Japan. It features chicken and a variety of vegetables, including, carrots, renkon (lotus root), and konnyaku. “Chikuzen” used to be the name of what is now modern-day Fukuoka, and was the most popular cuisine from that city. The holes in the lotus root inspired people to believe that it had the power to reveal the future, and satoimo is known for its alleged powers of fertility, given the sheer number of potatoes that spring from the soil. Satoimo is beautiful when cut in a decorative way, and thus perfect for your osechi!
Yield: 4 servings
Time: 70 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb thigh chicken (cut into bite sizes)
- 5 satoimo
- 1/4 lb renkon (lotus root)
- 1/4 lb carrot
- 5 shiitake mushroom
- 1/4 lb gobo
- 2.5 oz kinusaya (snow peas)
- 1 konnyaku
Spices for chicken
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp sake
Spices for chikuzenni
- 1.5 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp mirin
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 cups dashi soup (or 2 cups water, 1 tsp hondashi)
Preparation
- Mix spices for chicken in a small bowl and marinate chicken inside for 10 minutes
- Cut carrots into a floral shape (slice carrot into 1/2 inch pieces then cut around to make 5 petals–see pictures)
- Cut renkon (lotus root) into a floral shape (same as carrot), then marinate them in 2 cups water with 1/2 tsp vinegar for 10 minutes (see pictures)
- Shape satoimo (taro). Cut an edge onto the top and bottom of the potato, then cut six edges around the top and bottom, kind of like a six faceted a diamond (see picture). After the cuts are made, wash with cold water, then boil for 2 minutes
- Pull the gobo’s skin with the back of knife and slice thin at a sharp angle (see pictures)
- Make an incision in the center of the konnyaku and turn inside out to give it a spiraling shape (see pictures)
- Cut each shiitake with an X on the top (see pictures)
- Remove the stringy edge from the kinusaya (snow peas), boil for few minutes, then cut in half
- Mix spices for chikuzenni in a small bowl
- Put oil in a pan and sauté chicken for 2 minutes
- Add carrot, satoimo, renkon, shitake, gobo, and mixed spices, then boil for 40 minutes
- Arrange on a dish or inside oshechi box with kinusaya (snow peas)
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